Tuesday, October 27, 2015

a whole lotta this and that

 This past weekend when hubby and I were out and about in one of our favorite towns, we stopped in a new french bakery. I thought it was really clever how they had vintage kitchen tools and milk bottles displayed in box frames on the wall.


Don't these croissants look delicious? I had a cup of coffee and...not a croissant, but an eclair. It was different from what we're accustomed to here in America. It was more of a skinny, dense pastry filled with the richest, creamy chocolate I'd ever tasted. Being on the FODMAP diet, I wasn't supposed to have this (gluten; milk chocolate). Silly me thought I'd be OK, especially since the eclair was small. (Justification.) It was delicious going down, but an hour later my stomach was in so much pain, I was almost doubled over. Boy, did I learn my lesson on that one. Definitely not worth it!

   
 We also stopped in one of our favorite vintage and "treasure" shops. It's a consignment shop that will buy your things right then and there and pay you cash. I didn't make a lot of money this go-around, but just enough that I was able to turn around and use that money to buy a few things in the shop. ;-) One of the things I bought was this beautiful necklace...


 and I also found a pure wool plaid blanket in perfect condition. I'm allergic to wool, so I can't use this blanket, but for now it looks nice hung over the chair in Tim's room/the guest room. I'll admire it for a little while, then pass it on to my mom. She was with us while we were shopping and really loved this blanket.


 Speaking of jewelry, Brian surprised me with these earrings the other day. We had been at a friend's Halloween party and her daughter had a bunch of her handmade jewelry there. I was looking through the stash and commented that I thought these earrings were pretty. The next morning when I got up and walked into the kitchen, these earrings were propped up next to my laptop on the kitchen table. I was super surprised because Brian usually doesn't do things like this. He's more of a gift giver for birthdays or Christmas.


 Isn't this a pitiful sight? Leaves all over the ground and patio furniture; hostas drying up. Patio weather is officially over. Cushions are now stored away in the garage and the furniture is bunched up against the house. We'll be covering it all with a tarp as soon as all the leaves are done falling. Brian cleaned out the gutters this weekend and I did a lot of sweeping and leaf-blowing. It's a never-ending job in the fall...it's like shoveling while it's still snowing.


Remember my neighbor's gorgeous maple tree that I've been documenting in photos all fall? This is it today. Almost bare. Another sad sight. And look at that gloomy sky. I think the sun will now be few and far between and gray skies and rain more the norm.


It's been a long time since I've had any red meat and I'm tired of chicken...and seeing I can't have legumes on the FODMAP diet (which I miss very much, especially since I ate mostly vegetarian), I decided to try a pot roast tonight. I smothered it in carrots, parsnips, celery and onion. Onion is another big no-no on FODMAP, but I'm hoping that with picking out the big chunks of onion and eating everything else, my tummy will be OK. The experts say not to even eat anything that's been cooked with onion - not even onion powder! - but I just couldn't see cooking a roast without it. Onion adds so much flavor. I had my meal about 1-1/2 hours ago and so far, I feel fine. 


 Thanks for visiting ~ have a wonderful week!


19 comments:

  1. Your husband is so sweet to do that! You're a lucky woman. I love how you two go exploring on weekends.
    Brenda

    ReplyDelete
  2. Your pot roast looks amazing!! I hope you continue to feel fine!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You are rolling in the jewels, my friend!!! ;-) I love everything, especially the earrings.

    I want to hear more about your food plan, did you do a post abut it? I know it's hard to try things you've avoided for a long time...it's a real shock to your system. I've given up sugary sweets, it sort of happened naturally a few months ago. Just stopped craving them. Now when I have something big, like a cupcake or sugary donut, I get really wired and queasy.

    Glad you had a great time (in Evanston?).

    Jane x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've done a couple of previous posts with links to the FODMAP plan:

      http://comfyhouse.blogspot.com/2015/10/a-little-catch-up-ibs-and-fodmap-diet.html

      http://comfyhouse.blogspot.com/2015/10/weekend-recap-and-update-on-fodmap-diet.html

      Delete
  4. I can't believe the difference in the tree you have been posting on Instagram.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a lovely necklace you bought and the earrings from Brian are beautiful too, he is so lovely isn't he!!! Hope that things go well with the diet, it seems as though you are working out what you can and cannot have quite well so far! xx

    ReplyDelete
  6. It always amazes me how fast the seasons turn, where there is glorious color. You know here we just sort of fade...
    You and your husband are a darling couple, did you know that the two of you always make me smile:)
    I spy a delicious evening meal and I am glad that it settled well too!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Beautiful jewellery, especially that necklace. Yes, I know how you feel about the leaves on the ground! Happy Autumn!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your husband was so thoughtful surprising you that way! Love the kitchen utensil displays in the restaurant!

    ReplyDelete
  9. No beans? Oh no! I could never do that. The earrings are so pretty and a nice surprise. My senior boy had a birthday on the 26th and I wanted to get eclairs for him but he went out with friends so that saved me from being tempted by one. I don't normally eat that kind of stuff but ever once in a while I feel like being just a little bit bad. :) We had a storm early this morning and flooding and it's been gloomy all day. Our weather is still warm but they are saying that after this system passes through, it will start to feel cooler. We'll see. Just feels muggy right now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You wouldn't have any choice on the legumes if they were making you terribly sick, like they do me!

      Delete
  10. I love that display of the vintage kitchen tools and your husband is a romantic! :) How thoughtful :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. That is a lovely necklace and your earrings from your husband are really nice, a sweet surprise for him to do for you.

    Oh my that glorious tree has shed it's gloriousness.

    Stew looks yummy!

    Happy Fall ~ FlowerLady

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm so sorry that you were in so much pain after eating that. In the future feel free to send all French pastries my way.

    ReplyDelete
  13. The bakery decor is really nice. I haven't tried to reintroduce onions yet, so I hope you'll say how you felt the next day. So far the fodmap diet is not doing wonder, but I was very sick when I began, so maybe my body needs more time to adjust.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I love the this & that posts! I am so sorry that you got sick after eating that though. that is not good! I am on the Whole 30 program and feel so much better with the flours, sugars, and legumes out of my diet. I have a lot more energy, and my overall achiness is almost completely gone. It is amazing what food does to our bodies. Hope you have a great night--xo Diana

    ReplyDelete
  15. That is really cool how the kitchen utensils were display in an art form. You do have a sweet husband! I don't think I could give up beans, in fact I had some black beans today (my favorite). Your neighbors tree reminds me how fast the seasons can change.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's not that you have a choice in giving up beans when you have IBS - unless you want to remain very sick.

      Delete
  16. Interesting how you are managing your eating to feel better. I love the pix from the bakery. Fun blog post.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to leave a kind comment - I read and appreciate each one!